Teaching the basics of running via the experiences of a 79-year-old geezer who has been running for 41 years.

March 21, 2009

Today was a stressful day for my legs

In mid afternoon I walked the 1.5 miles on the northward segment of the Jordan River Parkway, beginning at 100th South. I felt stronger during and after the walk than I did on Thursday. Then, in late afternoon I rototilled my two gardens. The 'tilling took about 2 hours. 'Tilling is a lot of work, because I have to turn the tiller by pushing on the handles. Sometimes, depending on the lay of the garden, I can turn the 'tiller while it is moving, and that is easier. Other times I have to stop the 'tiller and turn it while it is stopped, a much harder task. Another reason 'tilling is stressful on my legs is that I'm walking on loose ground, and my feet sink into the dirt and turn and twist in the dirt. I have stiff ankles, and I like to walk/run on a hard surface that doesn't give, because my ankles aren't twisted as much. I was tired when I finished the 'tilling, but not as tired as I was after just my walk on Thursday. So, my body is getting stronger, but it has a long ways to go to regain the strength it had before my "blood clot" attack in January.

If I feel OK on Monday, I'll merge in about 10% jogging with my walking, doing the 1.5 mile route again. That would be about 0.15 miles of jogging, scattered throughout the walking. I'll probably jog in spurts of 100 feet or so.